London Fashion Week – Page 2

London Fashion Week SS14 at Somerset House

Published on September 17, 2013September 17, 2013 by Alicja JasnikowskaLeave a comment

Yesterday I finally made it down to Somerset House to check out the London Fashion Week SS14 showrooms. The Courtyard houses the main tents where models take to the catwalk in the designers visions for Spring 2014. Yes, just as normal folk are beginning to pull on jumpers and dust off their coats, the fashion folk are projecting what will be the hottest trends when the sun reappears sometime around March. Here is a summary of what I saw and what I loved.

London Fashion Week SS14 New Gen entrance hall

First stop was the Topshop sponsored New Generation hall where the next big things in fashion tout their wares. My favourite shoe designer of the moment, Sophia Webster, showed off a display of her signature candy coloured, kooky heels, predicting bold colours and clever heel detailing for next spring. Oh and jelly heels! My particular fave is the ‘Killer’ stiletto, surely the shoe Bridget Fonda’s rival should have worn in Single White Female…

Shoes, such pretty, pretty shoes by Sophia Webster for SS14

A lot of the New Gen hall was empty as catwalk collections by the likes of J. JS Lee and Simone Rocha hadn’t made it to the showrooms yet, so I headed upstairs to the Ready to Wear Emerging and Contemporary collections.

First stop was Zoe Jordan who showed at the early hour of 9am on Saturday morning, and put out a collection inspired by a grown up skater girl. Expect sports influenced pieces such as white punched leather tees married with printed silk dresses, in a palette of white mixed with bold hues.

Fresh from the catwalk: Zoe Jordan’s ‘Pretty Vandals’ SS14 collection

Christopher Raeburn’s collection also had an overlying sportswear feel (a trend that refuses to go away) with high-tech fabrics worked into chic printed separates.

Christopher Raeburn’s SS14 vision

Georgia Hardinge has this year decided to focus on her buyers and will be presenting a show in Shanghai next week, but for London she was on hand to explain her pretty printed silk dresses and clever pleat inserts. Collaborating with a specialist, she has created intricate origami shapes hidden within her box pleat skirts and tops. Beautiful!

The designer herself, Georgia Hardinge wearing a pleated piece from her SS14 collection

Another brand that caught my eye was Paper London, which featured gorgeous laser cut jackets and wide sculptural garments in a tight palette of white, red and navy.

Paper London’s intricate cut-outs for SS14

Onto emerging talent where Jane Bowler’s hand-cut leather and PVC plastic creations were drawing attention. Strong editorial garments, plus amazing jewellery and reworked trucker caps means this brand will be a winner with the streetwear and music crowd.

Hand cut leather and PVC plastic pieces from Jane Bowler SS14

Finally I loved the pleat work, colour combinations and printwork of Heohwan Simulation’s SS14, who showed off-schedule on Day 1 of London Fashion week. Definitely one to watch…

Monochrome and yellow at Heohwan Simulation SS14

In the afternoon I managed to catch a presentation at the stunning Freemasons’ Hall showcasing the work of Natasha Zinko – a cute floral stage and pretty ethereal vibe in a succinct collection.

Natasha Zinko SS14

I was supposed to attend the dramatic Pam Hogg show at 5pm, but after queuing for over 30 minutes with what felt like half of London my tired feet got the better of me and I decided to give it a miss. I hear it was quite the crazy with magpie hats and more refined silhouettes mixing with the usual latex catsuits.

London Fashion Week SS14 draws to a close today and the crowds of fashionistas in towering heels will move onto Milan for the next round of shows. Although not until they have partied at tonight’s closing parties, put on by the likes of Harper’s Bazaar and Dazed and Confused. When in Rome…

London Fashion Week SS14 runs from 13-17 September 2013 http://www.londonfashionweek.co.uk/ at Somerset House

For further details of featured designers: www.sophiawebster.co.uk; www.zoe-jordan.com; www.christopherraeburn.co.uk; www.georgiahardinge.co.uk; www.paperlondon.com; www.janebowler.co.uk; www.heohwansimulation.com; www.natashazinko.com.

Dining at The Shard

Published on September 14, 2013 by Alicja JasnikowskaLeave a comment

Last night I visited The Shard for the first time. Or to be more specific I dined at the restaurant Aquashard on the 31^st floor of London’s latest architectural triumph. Whether you love it or hate it, The Shard is definitely a prominent landmark on the London skyline, boasting a lift that can scale 30 floors in 30 seconds and stunning views of the city. Unfortunately, the first day of London Fashion Week also brought with it the rain, and the rather spectacular view was somewhat ruined by the cascades of water running down the windows. Nonetheless, the beauty of Aquashard made up for the view. A sexy, low lit, slick interior – reminiscent of a chic New York cocktail bar – is complimented by a three-storey high atrium and plenty of glass. As the world’s fashionistas descend on our fair city, I thought it more than worthy of a blog.

Stunning cocktails – a Margarita

I am incredibly lucky as I, along with my cousin Joanna, were being treated to supper by my lovely aunt Irma. We had a fantastic evening. The atmosphere and service at Aquashard was superb. Our dishes for each course were brought out simultaneously, so no-one at the table had to wait to start their meal. Our wine was topped up regularly and empty plates disappeared discreetly. My only complaint was that drinks did take some time to arrive, but this could be due to the large, lively crowd at the bar on a Friday night.

Britain’s finest artisanal cheese selection

So to the food… Aquashard ‘serves innovative contemporary British cuisine’ and the menu is succinct and well written. The food itself is creative and beautifully presented, but a little hit and miss. We ordered three different fish starters and shared them all. The confit salmon with Dorset crab, and a puree of avocado and courgette was delicious and definitely our favourite of the three. For mains, my cousin ordered the lamb, my aunt had the Diver Scallops and I opted for cod. Each dish was lovely and very subtle with some intriguing difficult-to-place flavours, although the scallops were too lightly cooked for my palette and the lamb was quite rare (admittedly this was requested). Unfortunately I was too busy dining to remember to take pictures, and I didn’t think an image of an empty plate would suffice. For dessert we opted for two cheese plates, which came with wafer thin walnut bread and a delicious chutney. Not only were these very tasty, but as you can see from the images they also looked very stylish. All in all, I had a wonderful evening – the setting and atmosphere was fantastic and the dishes were beautifully presented, but make sure you choose wisely as certain dishes are better than others.

Me and my aunt Irma

If you’re in town for Fashion Week, it’s worth noting that reservations need to be made in advance and we did have to wait over a month for a suitable time slot. However, you can come for cocktails at the bar and to soak up the atmosphere while taking in the view of London by night. I would definitely recommend it…

For more information and to make a booking go to www.aquashard.co.uk

One for the boys

Published on June 19, 2013 by Alicja Jasnikowska1 Comment

The last three days saw London play host to a bevy of beautiful men & supreme fashion talent in the biannual London Collections Men. The sister (or brother) of London Fashion Week, this menswear only special showcased a wealth of British talent, from emerging designers to established Savile Row heavyweights. The three day event presented the collections for Spring Summer 2014 (a whopping 12 months ahead!) so all you eagle-eyed gents know what to keep an eye out for in the coming year.

With Savile Row tailors Hardy Amies & Richard James, & big name brands Burberry Prorsum & Tom Ford, the shows attracted the cream of male British style – the boldly colourful Tinie Tempah, the handsome & groomed David Gandy, & housewife & teen favourite Harry Styles. The featured image is from Burberry Prorsum SS14, as designed by the fantastic Christopher Bailey, who has declared that next year you will mainly be wearing contrasting pastels, polka dots & stripes. Together. That should divide the men from the boys…

http://www.londoncollections.co.uk/men